Snickers may not satisfy when cut to 250 calories

Trying to get around that "fat tax," eh, Mars? The maker of Milky Way, Snickers and 3 Musketeers candy is slashing its 2013 line of chocolate bars to contain no more than 250 calories each -- spelling the demise of those gut-busting king-sized versions. The line in the nougat has been drawn, with health-conscious noshers applauding the slimmed-down sweets (@drlisayoung says, "No more candy bars the size of hammers!") and cynics searching for an ulterior manufacturer motive.

NPR's Allison Aubrey mocks, "It sort of reminds me of beer manufacturers' campaigns for responsible drinking." One professional athlete is even taking the downsizing as an unpatriotic assault on his pre-workout snacks, tweeting, "That's sadly very un-American and an effrontery to hungry bonked cyclists across the country."